Charles james



(No Mudel.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

G. J. APPLBTON. CIRCULAR RIB KNITTING MAGHINE.

' No. 514,895. j Patented Fb. 20, 18941 Jig! lVl/E/VZ'UR By ATTORNEY.

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c. J.-APPLETON. CIRCULAR RIB KNITTING MACHINE.

No 514,895. Patented Feb. 20, 1894.

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UNITE STATE FFICE:

ATENT CHARLES JAMES APPLETON, on NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR, BY DIRECT AND MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO THE APPLETON AUTOMATIC MACHINERY ooMPANY, OF

LONG ISLAND CITY, NEW YORK.

CIRCULAR-RlB-KN-ITTING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 514,895, dated February 20, 1894.

' Application filed March 27, 1891. Serial no. 386.711. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern: 7

Be it known that I, CHARLE JAMES APPLE- TON,'a citizen of the United States, residing in the city of New York, in the county and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Circular-Rib-Knitting Machines, which said invention relates I to an improvement in circular-rib-knitting machines of the class shown in my pending application bearing Serial No. 361,425, and filed August 8, 1890; and I hereby declare that the followingis a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making part of this I 5 specification, in which I V Figure l is a plan view ot my improved machine. Fig. 2 is a transverse vertical section. Fig. 3 is a horizontal section showing the cains'on the under side of the cap 0 and the needles and slots a in dial a. Fig. 4 is a detail of the ratchet and pawl and tripping device for operating the sprocket wheel and chain. Fig. 5 is the sprocket wheel and chain and the lower portion of the vertical spindles 2 5 which operate the mechanism for throwing the horizontal needles in and out of operation.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the several figures.

This improvement relates to circular rib o knitting machines having two Sets of needles producing circular ribbed work.

The objects of. my invention are: first: to make any number of plain courses to form hems of various widths on any kind of tubu- 3 5 lar ribbed work such as ribbed tops for half hose, hems and plain tops for ladies hose and hems for undershirts and other circular ribbed articles. To this end I employ devices, for putting out of action the horizontal needles 40 and for holding down the loops in the proper position to allow the vertical needles to slide through them and then be ready to take the yarn for another course, this being done'continuously until sufficient plain work is knitted to form a hem well over the inner side of the fabric where it is joined by the ribbing needles again coming into operation. Second: to produce ladies and misses hose with hem tops, ribbed legs and plain ankles.

The principle of my invention consists in automatic changes from ribbed to plain knit-j ting and back again to ribbed work. The hold-downs are so arranged in relation to the needles that they come into operation only when the knitting needles cease to work and the vertical needles are knitting plain work for the hem or welt.

The following description explains the Working of the machine:

. arepresents acircular plate carrying the horizontal needles o which are arranged radially thereupon in the usual manner.

I) is a stationary cylinder upon the outer face of which the vertical needles I) are situ ated.

b are grooves cut on the upper edge of the cylinder b to hold the inner end of the holddowns e and the stationary slotted ring 6 from revolving with the cam cylinder (1. The shanks or butts of the vertical needles project into a cam groove (1 in the cam cylinder at which operates said needles. V

c is the cam cap and o is the drawing in cam which is used for operating the horizontal needles a, said cam cap being fixed upon a central shaft 9 so as to revolve therewith.

e is the cam groove for actuating the holddowns between the vertical needles and through the upper edge of the needle cylinv der 5. .8 0

6' represents one of the hold-downs which slide in the groove cut in the under side of the stationary slotted ring (2 which is held in position by the stationary cylinder b owing to the engagement of hold-downs 6' with the 8 5 respective slots in the upper edge of cylinder 5 and by the lugs f which are attached to and revolve with the cam cylinder (1, having their ends in the groove f cut on the outer edge of the circular ring (2 g is a tooth segment mounted loosely on a collar of the cam cap 0 and intermeshing with a sector It in the same plane, which latter is carried on the upper end of a spindle j journaled in an extension 2" of the yoke 73 which 5 is fastened to the cam cylinder d. The sector h is slotted at h to permit the passage of the yoke and said yoke is attached to the up per portion of the central shaft g. This shaft passes centrally through the circular plate'a roo' and has a collar on its lower end. The yoke 't' revolves with shaft 9 and with the cam 0, plate a being provided with downward projecting arms '0 c which abut against lugs o 11' formed on the bed plate .2, thus holding the dial plate and horizontal needles stationary. Fixed upon the lower end of the spindle 70 is a diskj which has a tripping devicej on its under side arranged to move the disk in either direction by the action of the pin a", cam chain m, and pattern cam m thereby throwing the horizontal needles in and out of action.

Zis the main driving shaft journaled underneath the bed plate and carrying a pinion Z which meshes with a gear Z formed upon the lower side of the needle cylinder d, these gears being preferably set so that there will be two revolutions of the pinion to one of the cam cylinder. Mounted loosely on the shaft Z contiguous to said pinion is a sprocket wheel on around which passes a pattern chain m constructed so as to regulate the number of plain courses in the welt and in the length of the fabric to be knitted.

Mounted on shaft Z close to disk 19 is a p is secured to the face of the disk, which is rotated by being secured to the driving shaft Z. By the rotation of the driving shaft Z, the pin 19' will, as shown in Fig. 4, pass over the point of the tripping plate q and after passingove'r the center will depress the large end of tripping plate q and depress the tripping plate, it being hung on its center, and cause the'pointof tripping plate to rise so as to allow theprojecting pin 1) to pass underneath and by coming into contact with the large end of tripping plate q will force the point downward and allow the projecting pinpon its next revolution to pass overthe sharp point and depress the ratchet and spring pin 0, having attached to it thepawl n which will move the ratchet wheel attached to the sprocket Wheel m and cause it to move the chain on one link, every other revolution of the driving shaft Z. The spring 0 shown in Fig. 2, is arranged around the pin 0, so as to raise it high enough to allow the pawl 12 to take the next tooth of the ratcherwheel when the spring pin and tripping plate are depressed by the pin 1).

'r is a spindle journaled vertically in the bed plate a having a spring 1 ,120 force it down, and an enlarged butt or end adapted to be impinged upon by 9. lug or enlargement m formed upon some of the links of the pattern chain m, the number of such lugs being proportionate to the number of plain ooursesrequit-ed in the welt. As the driving shaft, sprocket wheel and chain revolve, the spindle 1' is raised into position each time its lower end encounters one of the lugs m so that its upper end engages with the tripping device j and on further revolution of the machine the tripping device ,7" is swung against one of stops j and thus through the spindle or shaft it operates the sectors h and g. A pin g extends from slot g in the sector g down to cam s pivoted to earn plate 0 on its under side, said cam being moved thereby, and said pin being fast to the cam. The slot g is a curved graduated slot. This serves to throw the horizontal needles out of operation with the assistance of the drawing in cam a while the vertical needles proceed with plain work.

Passing through the spindle r is a second spindle 1" which is elevated in the same manner as spindle r by the cam m driven by the sprocket wheel m for the purpose of moving the sectors hand g one half their distance by means of the tripping devicej' thus causing the ribbing needles to retain two or more stitches each when plain work is being knit with the vertical needles by the aid of the hold-downs e. That part of spindle rengaging the tripping devic'ej isso proportioned to the size of the surrounding spindle 7 that it moves the tripping devicej but one-half the distance it is adapted to be moved by said spindle 0'.

WVhen it is desired to producea tuck stitch known as aroyal rib finish near thewelt or hem the spindle r iselevated once every revolution of the machine so as to move the tripping device j each revolntioncausing the ribbing needles to tuck the stitches to form the royal rib.

I may further describe theoperationofmy machine as follows: Work beingon the neodles and motion being given to the cam ring (Z by the pinion Z on shaft land the other working parts being in position for making ordinary rib-work, one of the cams m on the chain m engages the butt endof the spindle a" and raises it high enough for its upper end to engage the tripping device 3' and thus (through the spindle It) by moving the sectors h and g by means of the pin g working in the groove 9 on sector 9 throws the horizontal needles 0!. out of operation while'still leaving the loops thereon. The vertical needles still continue knitting plain work until by the assistance of the hold downs which keep the fabric clear from the machine and prevent its rising with the needles, asufiicient length is produced for the purpose required. Then another cam on the chain will cause the spindle r to engage with the trippingdevice j returning the sectors to their former position and bringing both sets of needles into operation again forming ribbed work and completing the turned welt. Motion is given to the chain and its sprocket by the ratchet at, its pawl and tripping device j" and the chain moves only one link during each revolution of the machine, thus creatinga saving in the length of chain.

It will be readily seen from the foregoing and from the drawings that the essential principle of my hold-down device may be ap plied to circular ribbed knitting machines of any of the wellknown classes, the only necessary addition being means substantially such as I have shown for successively throwing said hold-downs into and out of engagement with the needles and the loops carried thereby.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, as follows:

1. In a circular rib-knitting machine, the combination of needle cylinder b having a radially slotted upper edge and its needle cam cylinder (1, dial a andits cap 0, and holddowns e, said hold-downs engaging respectively said slots in cylinder 1), and having lugs operated from cam cylinder d, and the stationary ring e slotted for the reception of the same, substantially as described.

2. In a circular rib-knitting machine the combination of vertical and horizontal needles; means for operating the same, and means for throwing said horizontal needles automatically into and out of operation, with holddowns adapted to hold the work down on the vertical needles when the horizontal needles are out of operation, and'means for operating said hold-downs, which consists of the needle cylinder having radial slots in its upper edge, and the cam cylinder having a cam groove operatively engaging with a lug on each of the hold-downs; and a stationary ring provided with slots wherein said hold-downs maybe reciprocated, substantially as described.

3. The combination of the needle cylinder b and its needles, dial a and its needles, cam ring 01, sector 9' having slot 9 cam s in operative engagement with said slot, sector It engaging with sector g, tripping device j, op-

eratively connected with sector h; spindles r and r, and pattern mechanism for operating said spindles, substantially as described. In witness hereto I hereby subscribe my name, this 24th day of March, A. D. 1891, in the city, county, and State of New York.

CHARLES JAMES APPLETON. In presence of- I HENRY M. HEYMANN, GEO. I-I. DAVIS. 

